Tuesday, September 14

Today I am grateful for:

Continued sunny fall splendor.

A very busy day doing things that needed doing. I got some vacuuming and sweeping done, and several loads of laundry, changed cat litter and so on. These were things that didn't get done while I was away because my sweetie was working on the house. Catching up makes the house a little nicer.

Mom had a little fall the night I was driving home. It was apparently more like sliding off the edge of the bed onto the floor while she was trying to get up to pee. What I am grateful for, is that my family is seeing this, combined with what I said to them about Mom being alone at night, and for now people are taking turns spending the night with her. There are three people, possibly four, who could share this responsibility. If they are truly determined for her to stay at home and not have her live in a facility, I fully believe it is necessary for someone to be there overnight.

That my sweetie is making some good progress on the house every day. He was rebuilding the steps on one side of the house while I was away, and today we finished the rails. It is a very solid set of stairs.

I went to see River, and it was really nice to be back at the barn. We worked on the outdoor obstacles for a while, then I rode him in the indoor arena for a while.

I really missed the animals this week. I especially enjoy my kitty cuddles at night. Animals help me be in the moment.

We watched "Kick Ass 2" which was nowhere near as good as the first one.

We spent more time with the new cat, introducing him to the other kitties. We brought in Fatty again, and that went pretty well, and then Jones. There was no aggression, but Jones was a little wigged out by a new cat. He hasn't met a new cat since we got him as a kitten almost four years ago.

Shortly after midnight I opened my birthday present, because my sweetie will be getting up to drive to visit HIS family and it would have felt rushed to open it before he left. It is a WONDERFUL book about art. It is art history, the meaning and significance of several great works. I am very excited about this book, and I intend to read about one or two paintings a day, and try to absorb it.

This is very special that he made such an effort. My husband doesn't make a big deal out of special days like our anniversary or birthdays, and for a long time I kind of went along with him, but I do like romantic gestures. HE doesn't care if he gets anything, and he's super hard to buy for, so a lot of the time we just go out for supper or something for his birthday. What happens, is something comes along that he would like, and we buy it and call it his birthday. That works for me too sometimes, but it's not a surprise then. I love the moment of getting a gift that someone had to think about to find the right thing, and trying to guess what it might be. Christmas is kind of awful if there's nothing to open.